Love and Medicine
by Dzuljeta
Summary: Martha Jones knows aspirin is lethal to Time Lords. She can only hope the pack of aspirin pills the Doctor has in his hands does not mean what she thinks it does… Ten/Rose
1. Love & Medicine: Chapter One

_A/N. Hello again! Posting the two fics (this one and _No Time Like the Present _I've put up ~1,5 days ago) separately was a suggestion I received from someone on _tumblr_, after having asked if I should somehow combine these or not. The one reply I've got helped me make up my mind, and the fics are completely unrelated. The similarities (so far, anyway) are… Ten, Martha… and, obviously, obviously… Rose! Hope you enjoy. :) _

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**Love and Medicine: Chapter One**

"Aspirin? Doctor, you can't take these! You might die!" Martha looked him over with panicked eyes. However, the alien appeared to be perfectly sensible. "You keep reminding me aspirin could be lethal for you… What is it doing here? Were you out to buy these? What for?" She hoped he was going to say something about refilling the ship's medical resources, about humans getting all kinds of stupid diseases, but the Time Lord only shrugged.

"These are not for me, Martha," the Doctor seemed distracted. "I've realised we're out of it, that's all. Just give the box to me."

Martha grimaced. "Sure, so you could poison yourself?"

"I think I have every right to ask of you to leave for even getting these insane ideas," he rolled his eyes in disapproval. "Anyhow. If it makes you feel better, you could come with me. Protect me from myself, or whatever," the alien gave her a knowing smile. His pain, sorrows or joys had nothing to do with anyone but himself.

Soon, the Doctor understood the TARDIS was determined not to allow them find the room he wished to enter so desperately. Not just yet, not together with the distrusting companion. The Time Lord was afraid of the possible outcome, with Martha having some sort of tender feelings for him, and what not.

"Martha. I think I'll find my way from here, thank you _very much_."

The dark-skinned girl understood the Doctor wished for her to leave him, and rolled her eyes. "Not until you promise you won't do anything stupid."

"I give you my word. The TARDIS will show you the way to your room. Now, go!"

The human shook her head at him incredulously, but began to slowly slog away from him. After all, there was nothing she could do.

Seeing Martha disappear from sight, the Time Lord sighed with relief. He knew his brilliant ship would make sure everything ends up just fine. Thankful the TARDIS was always on his side, he followed the route that would lead him to where he needed to be – to his suffering blonde companion. _Rose._

_He never had the time to think about it properly. And it didn't matter._

"_Doctor," she had whispered, tears in her eyes. "Hello."_

"_Rose. Welcome back." He hadn't asked her anything, not having fully grasped Rose was there with him._

"_This thumping pain in my head is going to kill me," she had muttered before the Doctor had the chance to pull her into a bone-crushing hug. "I'm certain you don't have anything to ease headaches?"_

"_I'm afraid not. But I could go grab some from the nearby chemist's. Could you wait for a few minutes, Rose?" _

_Of course, the girl had assured him she'd wait, for as long as it took._

"_Don't move away. Don't wander off."_

"_I promise," she'd said. This time, she was going to stay put. Willingly._

_It wasn't until the Time Lord returned to the TARDIS that he remembered his most recent companion, who but sent an incredulous glance his way._

"_Aspirin?"_

Unwilling to do anything, feeling as if her head was breaking to pieces, Rose was sitting on the bed in her chamber. She wondered what was to happen now that she was back. There was this question she had to ask him-

"There you are, Rose. A nice pack of aspirin tablets," the Doctor smiled at her uncertainly, handing her some of the needed medicine.

"Thanks," she grabbed it from him, suddenly unsure, a glass of water in one hand, a pill in the other.

"Just swallow it already, dear. It hurts me to see you in pain."

"Likewise."

"But… I'm not in any kind of pain?"

Rose decided to let it go. After all, it was none of her business. "I'm glad to know it, my Doctor…"

"I'm so happy to have you by my side again, Rose. Thought I've lost you, and-"

The human grinned sheepishly at him. He was _certain_ she'd come to stay! Then, she saw his face darken.

"I'm sorry…" it was more than probable she was the one guilty about the Doctor remembering the- the events. She gulped.

"Hey, at least now I'll get to finish the sentence," the Time Lord grinned, taking her cold hands into his.

"Yes?" She could not hide her surprise, knowing perfectly which sentence it was. "You haven't finished a lot of sentences."

"Don't you remember? When you told me you loved me, and I couldn't-"

"Of course. Of course I remember!" _Keep having nightmares about it every night. _ Tears started rolling down her cheeks almost immediately. The Doctor knew he couldn't allow this. Not any more. Not ever again.

"Rose Tyler. I cannot live without you. Never could. Never would." Ah. He could, and certainly would, if he _had_ to… but that was not something he chose to linger on.

The companion knew just as well what that meant, but beamed at him instead. "Doctor… Is this a more sophisticated variation of "I love you?"

He grimaced at her. "Well-"

She rolled her wide hazel eyes at him. "You don't actually _have_ to say anything."

The Doctor but gazed at the human, both relieved and confused. He felt he needed to say _something_.

"Could we- I don't know- return to this later?" his words were soft and barely audible, but the tone alone was more than enough for Rose, who wrapped her arms around him... Like so many times before, yet it was somehow different.

The Doctor smiled, seeing infinite joy in his companion's eyes. "My Rose."

They were so close to each other their lips were almost touching. It was clear both of them were fighting the undeniable wish to finally break the tension – where had _that_ come from – in the most pleasant way possible… Her hazel eyes were burning, the lips slightly parted…

The Doctor had completely forgotten about the other woman on board, deciding if something had to be sacrificed, it had to eventually be his conscious defences against this pink and yellow human. He knew he couldn't keep them up forever. These eyes… It seemed Rose was having slightly better self-control, but-

Martha almost broke in into the room, and stopped right in her tracks, seeing the unmistakable position the two were in.

"I'm sorry!" She backed away a few steps. "I… didn't mean to interrupt anything," the dark-skinned companion muttered, covering her face with her hands. "The TARDIS-"

Rose backed away from the alien, her face flushed. _For what reason?_

"Don't you dare blaming my brilliant ship, Martha." The Doctor's arm was wrapped protectively around Rose, who, while the unexpected appearance startled her a little, was trying hard to suppress her giggles at the absurdity of the situation. Of course. It was just their luck.

"She must have thought it best to lead you to me." _You must have been panicking hard. _"But, hadn't I told you-" The Time Lord sounded and felt flustered. It wasn't that he wasn't happy about Martha caring for him or about her not following his implied orders, no!

It wasn't about her breaking the joyful reunion with the woman he loved, nor was it because of-

"I was_ terrified_, Doctor! Who knows what could have entered your mind!"

-because of that.

"If I remember correctly, I've told you the medicine was_ not_ for me, yes?"

"Yes, but-"

"It was for me," Rose smiled at the girl apologetically. She seemed sweet. "I should have introduced myself first, before I-"

The Doctor noticed the blonde's discomfort and brushed a finger over his lips, his eyes begging for her to remain silent.

"You were _hurting_, Rose..."

"No need to worry now, Doctor. It's over."

"Sorry, could I ask you something?" Martha finally found the strength in her to address the girl. Beautiful and _blonde_. Obviously.

"Of course," Rose smiled at her, not expecting the blatant question from her.

"Are you… no, of course you are- would you want me to leave, now that you're here?"

The Doctor raised an eyebrow. "We haven't even discussed this yet! The staying bit, and… _are_ you staying with me, Rose?"

The Tyler girl rolled her big brown eyes at him. "Which part of _forever_ didn't you understand, you-?"

The Gallifreyan grinned at her, remembering Martha just after she coughed. It was her who was hurting now. She knew she probably shouldn't feel this bad about being completely ignored and basically forgotten by the Time Lord, who had this tendency anyway, but it still wasn't pleasant.

"Sorry. Rose probably doesn't even know who you are!" _Rose_ this. _Rose_ that. Martha Jones averted her eyes.

"I believe I know. Nice to meet you, Martha..?"

"Jones. Martha Jones. A medical student." One thing was for certain, the most recent companion understood. She was no longer needed there. The following words of the Doctor but confirmed her fears.

"Are you sure you're all right?"

The pink and yellow human but shrugged at this Martha girl hopelessly. Headaches seemed to have become a rather constant occurrence for Rose, especially since she'd been separated from the Doctor, seemingly for an eternity. Might be she was mistaken about the intensified strength and frequency of those, of course. Maybe this girl could tell her if something was wrong?

"I am, thank you," Rose assured the Doctor, sending him one of her sweetest smiles.

Martha had to remind the fair-haired woman the question. "So, do you wish me to leave?"

Rose stared at the other girl, not believing her ears. Why would _anyone_ want to leave the Doctor? This life, this adventure, this-

"Absolutely not. The more, the merrier? What do you say, Doctor?"

Martha shrugged uncomfortably. It was obvious she was going to become the fifth wheel if she stayed, no matter what Rose had said. "I really, really need to get back to my family," the almost-doctor hurried to speak, aware the Doctor was only looking at the blonde, possibly not hearing her.

"Do as you think best," the Time Lord responded vaguely.

Rose glared at him incredulously. "Are you going to let her leave, just like that? It was _I_ who wasn't invited."

"But you _are_ staying, I take it.

Rose grinned at her sheepishly.

"Don't you think I might disturb you, the pair of lovebirds that you are?"

"Oh, we're not-" The Doctor pressed Rose's hand harder. For how long will they be fooling themselves? He had sworn to himself that, if she ever returned to him, there wouldn't be any more pretending… Oh, well. He was bad at this.

Martha addressed Rose instead, her tone incredulous. "Not yet, or not anymore?"

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_A/N. Do tell me what you think! Please? :)_


	2. Love and Medicine: Chapter Two

_A/N. Thank you all so very much! :3 _

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**Love and Medicine: Chapter Two**

Martha met the murderous glare the Doctor sent her as soon as the question, either naïve or one supposed to have confirmed her doubts - escaped her lips. She shuddered, having turned her eyes away at once, suddenly feeling utterly mortified to have as much as dared to ask such a personal question.

"How… how are you here, Rose?" the Doctor asked, choosing to deliberately ignore the other companion for the time being.

Rose sighed, responding to the other companion on board first. "I can't answer this just yet, Martha."

She was not certain if the relationship between the Doctor and herself was ever going to progress, but pushing things in any way did not feel right. Discussing it with a person she did not know yet was out of the question.

"None of my business, I understand," Martha Jones hurried to assure them. It was true she had secretly hoped the blonde would begin telling her there was nothing going on between the two… especially since the Time Lord seemed ready to deny everything, no matter the self-explicatory almost-kissing scene she was unlucky enough to have witnessed.

"As for my re-appearance, Doctor… this is kind of complicated."

_Not 'I must leave you again' kind of complicated, I hope… _"I have all the time in the world, Rose." _We both do. _

The blonde shrugged at him hopelessly, thankful for the encouraging smile the other companion sent her way. "The walls of Time, they- they can be overcome… apparently." Of course, she _had _to take the difficult route, instead of just telling him-

_I can see as much, Rose. _"How?" The Doctor's interest was getting the better of him.

"As far as this universe is concerned, we tried our best not to damage anything," Rose whispered at him. "We haven't damaged anyone, but-"

The Doctor clenched his teeth._ Torchwood._ "Anyone but-? Rose?"

"Anyone but me," the final word was but breathed out. Both of the two other passengers could easily see the pain in her eyes – her wicked headache was far from over. The mere idea of giving her more of the aspirin pills made the Gallifreyan shudder inwardly. However, he knew that was the most likely step to take. Especially since even seeing her in pain was breaking his hearts.

Without a moment's hesitation, he sat down beside her onto the bed and found her hand.

"Rose- I'm afraid I could hurt you by even asking," he muttered, "but do you feel well enough to tell me something more about it?"

"I think I could, but-" she bit her lip, eyeing the dark-skinned companion worriedly. Whatever she was about to tell the Doctor did not have to be heard by anyone else.

"Hey, I can always leave!" Martha shrugged, managing to hide her disappointment well. "Personal things don't interest me," she assured them.

_Of course they don't_. The Doctor fought the wish to glare at the more recent companion again. No matter his feigned ignorance, the Time Lord knew it was quite the opposite. "Actually, Martha…"

The dark-skinned companion did not lose hope until the last moment. _Say 'I think you could stay', say it!_

"I believe it would indeed be better if you left us. We have quite a lot to discuss, and she might want to make some changes in her room after all this time-" _Fine. This one was both stupid and incredible._

For a moment, he believed Rose would object, but all she did was stare straight in front of her.

"Okay, so I'm going… I'd be in my room, if you need me, yeah?" Martha was visibly waiting for an invitation to stay with them, but none came, so she headed straight to her room, the way to which the TARDIS seemed eager to show her this time.

As soon as she was out of sight, the Doctor breathed out in relief, his voice soft. "I'd like to know as much as you can tell me, Rose."

"It was… painful. Everything. This new universe… Everything in it only brought more and more pain. Sorrow… grief. Sadness- _because you weren't in it-_

_No_, the young woman decided. This was not the right time to simply pour everything out just like that. Rose was looking for words, which was rather hard, as either the medicine was not of a sufficient consistency or some part in her mind had not fully registered she was finally back in her home universe… and was there to stay.

Noticing the concerned look on the Doctor's face, the Londoner winced. "The headache won't go away completely just yet. Sorry," she muttered apologetically.

"I'm not thoroughly experienced with the correct dosage of this. Do you think you need another pill, or has the medicine not worked yet?"

"I don't know."_ I don't care._

"Should I fetch Martha?"

"No!" Rose realised she must have sounded hysterical, and bit her lip. "No need. Really. Have you read the indications properly?"

"Indications? Ah, yes, indications! I-"

"Don't worry, Doctor," she smiled at him. "Everything should be written in the instructions, or on the package, at least…"

"Yes, of course! I'll run and read it-"

The girl sighed. Her Doctor, missing the obvious. "It's on the table on your left," she smirked.

"Oh." He focused on the package. The instructions were of no help. Studying how to poison himself was never his thing. "One pill, one and a half, or two? How serious is this?"

"It doesn't matter. I'm quite- quite used to it, and-"

"You, Rose Tyler, won't need to go through any more of this, for as long as you are here with me. I promise," he squeezed her hand tightly. "I only need to call Martha, she must know how to-"

_Stupid Time Lord. _"No!" she begged. "She cannot help me with this, trust me. Nobody from that parallel universe could. Not even Jack."

"But Martha is from our- your original universe! This universe, and she is certainly experienced enough in dealing with this, and I'm sure she could-"

_Daft, even. _"I don't need Martha. I need _you_," she said simply. "I am generally capable of taking care of myself, but, now that the universe is different again… I need to re-adjust, yeah?"

The Doctor peered at Rose, the sudden realisation hitting him hard. "Rose- how often have you been crossing different parallels?" If the companion herself had told him, albeit with some reluctance, that she had been the one having had to face some damage… The incessant headache must have been related to her experience. _My Rose._

"I have stopped counting after the sixth unsuccessful attempt of reaching this universe," she sighed. "Someone else was doing the counting afterwards. According to Jack, this is the fourteenth," the companion was slightly uneasy. "But what does it matter now?"

The Doctor pressed her hand. "You have returned, because of me," he whispered, incredulous. "Because you, after all this time, still wanted to?"

Rose did not lower her eyes, and was presented with a variety of conflicting emotions in his. "You know why."

He nodded, a small smile on his face. The hazel eyes could not lie. "And because I know, my dear Rose, that you are not going anywhere this time… You'd have to allow me into your brilliant human mind, so that I could-"

"Maybe later?"

The Time Lord was honestly surprised.

"Are you certain? I could simply-"

There was nothing _simply_ about it. Her mind, her thoughts, her feelings were the things Rose was ready to share with the Doctor eventually. But _eventually_ did not mean now.

"I _had_ to flee," she spoke in a small voice instead. "They were after me. I had nowhere to go. Jack was too busy to constantly keep an eye on me, the Torchwood team were getting suspicious-" Rose took a deep breath. "We had to make a decision, him and me. And we've decided the only thing I could do was try and find you," she shrugged. _No matter the risk. No matter the cost._ "As simple as that. Not that there was ever an option of _not_ doing that, mind you," she sent him the familiar grin.

"Fourteen attempts." This definitely explained the headache. "Are you sure those working in that wretched place weren't misleading you intentionally?"

Her response startled him. "Now that I think of it, yeah. All some of them wanted was to finally get rid of me." Rose has been the unwelcome addition to the team, however experienced and reasonable. What was even worse, the blonde was a dear friend of the Captain's. The fact she would not allow anyone but Jack run any of the needed tests on her did not help her acquire any of the sometimes-needed support. She was regarded as a strange specimen, protected by her powerful father and the head of Torchwood. "I have spent so much time working on and toying with the Torchwood equipment, that-" she did not succeed in suppressing a sob.

"Surely, you must know I-" _would have done everything in my power to get to you_. _But I was too stupid. Too much at a loss. Then, Donna came…_

"Forgive me."

The Londoner eyed him searchingly. "You've done no harm to me. You have nothing to apologise for, Doctor."

While the Time Lord did not share her approach, he decided to let it slide. "You are not mad at me, then? Not even for travelling with someone else?"

"It depends," she teased. "But I wouldn't be able to leave now, even if you-"

"Even if I did not want you here? Don't be silly, Rose Tyler. You are all-"

"Even if you were in love with somebody else. Martha Jones, for example."

"You realise you are indeed being downright silly, Rose?" he placed his hands on her shoulders. "The only person whose well-being was, and is, my main concern, is a certain blonde currently watching me."

The said blonde rolled her eyes at him playfully. "I guess I should be flattered?"

"I think you should be, yes. In what way should I tell you-"

_That you love me, Doctor?_ "You don't have to say anything, remember?"

The Doctor seemed lost for a moment, holding her firmly by the shoulders.

"She likes you, you know," Rose gave him a small smile. "Martha, I mean."

"Well, don't they all?"

The companion rolled her eyes at him. "I don't know where this conversation is going, but I'd like another pill first, yeah?"

The Doctor believed to have known exactly where it would have taken them, had the human not changed the subject… And he knew for sure the relief after having let go of her to fetch a glass of water was not something he was happy about…

"I think you should really allow me in, Rose. I won't be prying, just removing the cause of your pain – without the need of medicine."

"I don't think so, my Doctor."

The Time Lord was watching her, suddenly remembering something. Apparently, Rose Tyler could see the unmistakeable dread in his eyes, as she gave him an intense, yet calming look. She was still Rose, always his. Rose Marion Tyler… always.

"There are things I'm not ready to show you, Doctor. Not just yet, yeah?"

"Of course. You have told me so much already, Rose." Probably too much for one day. The Gallifreyan could not help but wondered if these were only her human secrets she was unwilling to share… It looked and felt anything but that. He had to find out as much as he could, without causing suspicion…

"You do remind me of someone, and it frightens me," the Doctor spoke, after a momentary thought. After all, this might have just been a stupid idea…

"Yes?"

"You might not remember… _I hope you don't. _There was this Bad Wolf entity once-"

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_A/N. Thoughts? :)_


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